A cute dancing robot built on Colido 3D printer by Print-Rite

As a pioneer in the aftermarket consumable industry with over 30 years experience, Print-Rite envisions the development of 3D printing technology and providing accessibility to 3D printer to enable everyone to enjoy the beauty, creativity and utility of 3D printing. Powered by Print-Rite, CoLiDo provides a comprehensive product range in Printer, filament and accessory for the 3D World.

Image source: 3ders.org

As you can see in the clip below, this is a perfect showcase model to emphasize what 3D printing technology can do for the field of robotics. Featuring very smooth surfaces to optimize movement and being reportedly very easily assembled, this robot can be programmed for a large number of tasks. It suggests that the Colido 3D printer might be well worth checking out if you’re considering getting a 3D printer for a classroom or for specific robotic applications in mind.

Video credit: Print-Rite

And as Print-Rite’s Hugo Wong explained to 3ders.org, it was the result of a major collaborative effort on behalf of the company’s engineering team. ‘We have a big team of engineers who are experts in different engineering fields. Through tremendous collaborative effort, we came up with different design ideas which ultimately led to the designing of this robot. Plastic parts were designed and printed using our Colido 3D printer and our company’s filament. Our software engineers have programmed the sequential movement of the robots, the results of which can be seen in its amazing movement.’

Overall, design took a full month, with 3D printing and assembly taking another month. While that might seem like a long time, robotics call for very carefully designed parts to create efficient movement. ‘The weight of the printed parts is VERY important when designing a robot. More or less weight of the printed parts will complicate the process of balancing the robot and getting it to move in the way we wanted,’ Hugo explains. In-house made PLA filament was used for all the plastic parts, with the smaller pieces being completed in just under an hour. The only parts that weren’t 3D printed were the electrical and mechanical parts, such as the PCB board, wires and motors. (Via 3ders)